People and pets are now living longer than ever before. Dog owners naturally want their dogs to live the longest, healthiest life possible. Dogs, like people, have specific nutritional needs. As the dog gets older, the aging process takes it toll. The dog tends to slow down mentally and physically.
Although the aging process is different for every animal (large and giant breeds tend to age faster than smaller ones), it generally begins at maturity, somewhere between one and two years of age. Most dogs become senior citizens at seven. Giant breeds are considered seniors at age five.
To determine whether or not a dog is old, its important to distinguish between chronological and biological age. Chronological age is merely the number of years a dog has lived while biological age is determined by how the dog looks, acts and feels. From an anti-aging standpoint the dogs biological age is more important that its chronological age. Longevity is attributed 70% to lifestyle and 30% to genetics. Up to 90% of diseases in dogs are due to the degenerative process associated with aging.
Balanced diets are essential, but alone they cannot provide a dog with optimal levels of nutrients his or her body needs. In fact, just to obtain adequate levels of vitamin E the dog would have to consume 5000 calories a day. Consuming this many calories is detrimental to the dogs health and could quickly lead to obesity and several other health-related problems. Also, taking vitamins once a day may not be sufficient to provide anti-aging benefits for the dog. Many vitamins are water-soluble and are diluted and secreted from the body fairly quickly.